


When I Fall In Love

by orphan_account



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Beaches, Childhood Sweethearts, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, marriage proposals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-26 01:51:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13847565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Eren has always adored beaches, and Levi is about to give him a reason to love them more.





	When I Fall In Love

IF THERE WAS ONE THING about Eren Yeager that he was sure everyone around him would be aware of, it would be the fact that he loves beaches so much, it’s not even funny.

Perhaps it’s because of the breeze that rushes past face or the water that stretches out to meet the horizon, he isn’t really sure, but there’s just something about beaches - though he can’t figure out what it is - that makes Eren feel so  _ free _ . It could be because of the grains of sand that slip past his toes or the occasional waves that would play tag with his feet, he doesn’t really care, but every time he steps into one he can practically  _ feel _ himself releasing his pent-up stress. Maybe it’s because of the way the ocean reminds him of how there’s still so much to explore beneath it, he doesn’t really know, but despite the various attempts to prove him otherwise, Eren has only ever acknowledged one truth and one truth alone:

    Beaches are fucking amazing.

    And his boyfriend, Levi Ackerman, knows that truth all too well.

    Which probably explains why they’re in a restaurant at the moment that has a beautiful view of the full moon that’s lighting up the Shiganshina Sea. Levi and Eren are out on a date tonight not only because it’s a Friday night (which has been designated as their mandatory date night) but also in celebration of the end of Eren’s first week of work. It’s a little windy at the patio where their table is located, and...okay, they probably should have eaten inside where it was a little warmer, but Eren just wasn’t able to resist the promise of a full view of the beach in front of them and the small band that’s playing beautiful music a few feet from their table. Levi wouldn’t have been able to convince Eren to stay in if he wanted to.

    Not that Levi minds, though. Levi almost never minds.

    “I just can’t see the point,” Eren mumbles as he finishes the rest of his dessert, clearly not yet done with his whining. He loves his mom, he really does, but he’s not going to give in to her relentless nagging and take  _ another _ five-hour car ride to Trost just so he can spend the upcoming weekend with his parents  _ again. _ “It’s only been two weeks since we last visited them, and it’s not like we don’t Skype every day too.”

    Levi chuckles and takes a sip of his drink. He’s impeccably dressed as usual, with his hair neatly parted a little bit to the side and his black Armani suit hugging his arms and torso in just the right way. His piercing grey eyes are looking at Eren with a softness that’s only reserved for him, and although he’s tired from work, his features are relaxed and carefree, effectively making him look stunningly younger. Sometimes Eren thinks it’s unfair how Levi could be wearing a piece of trash bag and people would still throw themselves at him. He needs them to know that Levi’s already taken, thank you very much.

    “You know how Carla worries sometimes, baby,” Levi says in an attempt to soothe him, and he rolls his eyes when he catches Eren’s petulant pout. “You never know, she probably wants to celebrate an occasion.”

    Eren furrows his brows. “Maybe. But why hasn’t she told me about it then?”

    “It’s probably a surprise?”

    “But you know mom can’t ever keep her mouth shut about anything,” Eren mumbles thoughtfully, turning his head to stare at the outdoor fire bowls that are lined up along the edge of the patio. “Unless it’s about a birthday party or a marriage proposal. But dad’s birthday is still a few months away and Mikasa just celebrated hers two weeks ago.”

    “Maybe Mikasa’s getting married?”

    “Levi! You know she’s still single!” Eren laughs.

    Levi smirks as he sits back. “Maybe she’s been hiding it from you.”

    Eren narrows his eyes. Levi’s testing him, he can tell. “She would tell me if that was the case,” he shoots back, and he crosses his arms defiantly. Mikasa’s his sister  _ and _ best friend. He’s pretty sure he’d find out about her relationship status before anyone else.

    “Sure thing, Eren.”

    “Yes, she would!”

    “I never said she wouldn’t.”

    “You said ‘ _ Sure thing, Eren. _ ’”

    “That, I did.”

    “You literally just implied that she wouldn’t!”

    “Now, that’s just you assuming, don’t you think?”

    Eren opens his mouth to make a retort, but after realizing that there’s no way he’s going to win the argument, he just groans and sighs loudly. “Ugh, I hate you.”

    “Love you too, sunshine,” Levi mutters, clearly amused at Eren’s riled up state, which only makes the latter more frustrated. Eren lets out a hideous noise at the back of his throat as he gives up on their banter, choosing to drink his water instead. He knows that Levi loves to discover ways to mess with him, and by now he’s learned how to take Levi’s teasing jabs like a champ. More often than not, the teasing results in childish fights, but at least it’s no longer as bad as it used to. As cheesy as it sounds, they love each other way too much to let the fights get the better of them.

    Not that it should come out as a surprise to those who know about them and their relationship, of course. Eren was five years old when he first met eleven-year-old Levi, who had just recently moved into the house next to Eren’s. They were of the same height back then, and they became best friends not long after. Eren loved playing with Levi, and over time, he had grown to spend most of his free time playing with Levi in the Ackerman household. Their childhood days mostly consist of Eren pestering Levi and Levi looking after a clumsy little Eren, and as frustrating as it might have been back then, now it just makes them both laugh every time they reminisce a memory or two of Levi scolding Eren for getting in trouble with the big bullies in his school, or if they suddenly remember how Eren would bug Levi because he didn’t know what to do with the homework his teacher had given him.

    That’s actually what makes their relationship unique, if Eren were to be honest. They started out as best friends. They still are. It took them a long,  _ long _ ass time to get together, but Eren’s pretty sure they both don’t regret a single thing about it. By the time they started dating, they’d already formed a bond unlike others - one that’s filled with unwavering trust and undying adoration for each other. They share an intimacy that isn’t quite like others, because although they’ve already grown used to it, Eren’s heart still skips a beat when Levi looks at him like  _ that  _ \- like...like he’s the only person that matters - and he still melts into a puddle in Levi’s arms, still feels protected every time they snake around him comfortably. Eren is truly grateful, because he knows that he can be invincible as long as he has Levi by his side.

 

    He’s interrupted from his thoughts when he hears the band’s lead singer’s call for attention.

    “I hope everyone’s having a nice evening,” he starts. Eren can hear a few of the customers murmuring affirmations, and he turns to give the band his full attention. “Tonight is going to be a special night, and most of you are probably wondering what’s going to happen, but it’s a surprise! You’ll find out what it is soon enough. It has to happen later, though, so we’ll all have to wait for it.”

    It’s not everyday that Eren experiences “surprises” in the restaurants that he’s gone to, so he’s very excited about it himself. He can already hear a little bit of chatter around him -  it’s probably the people getting curious - and the band’s lead singer continues talking. “I know, I know, I’m very excited about it, too, so please bear with us! In the meantime, though, we’re going to play our next song, and everyone can bring their dates in front for a dance. It’s a Friday night, after all, and let’s all enjoy it to the fullest!”

_     Ah _ , dances. Eren enjoys dancing. Even if he can’t do it to save his life.

    A beat and melody starts playing, and as the lead singer croons the beginning of the song which Eren recognizes as Andrea Bocelli's cover of Can't Help Falling In Love , he can’t stop his smile when he sees men and women standing up and making their way to the dance floor.

    “Do you want to dance, baby?” Levi asks Eren all of a sudden. He jumps and tries to figure out if Levi is joking, but apparently he isn’t, judging by the way he’s looking at Eren with so much warmth it’s a miracle that Eren hasn’t melted yet.

    “You know I can’t dance, Levi,” he mumbles. But despite his embarrassment, Eren smiles knowingly, because his lover knows how much he loves to dance even if he has practically two left feet. And since Levi is naturally good at it, he’s never once missed a chance to bring Eren to the dance floor no matter how many times his feet have been stepped on. Eren loves him for it.

    It really doesn’t surprise him when Levi stands up.

“Come on, then, you know I’ll be there to lead you,” Levi says, now smiling too and already taking Eren’s hand even if he hasn’t agreed yet. There’s a playful lilt to his tone, and Eren grins happily, barely able to contain his excitement as he stands up, grips the hand in front of him and follows Levi to the dance floor.

Surprisingly, there’s an unoccupied spot in the middle, and Eren lets Levi take him there. He can only hope that he won’t embarrass himself as Levi draws Eren’s arms around his neck, the song bringing forth an air of intimacy around them as they start swaying to it. After a few seconds, the band’s lead vocalist catches Eren’s gaze and smiles at him, and Eren can’t help but smile back. Maybe it’s a little weird that someone just caught his gaze so casually like they’re close friends, but he doesn’t give it much thought. He’s probably just being friendly. Instead, he focuses his attention on the man who’s holding him.

“You look beautiful, tonight, love,” Levi murmurs, leaning up to kiss the tip of Eren’s nose, as if to prove his point.

Eren’s cheeks turn pink in response. He knows that Levi is just being sincere, but such honesty has never failed to fluster him nevertheless. “I thought I looked beautiful everyday,” he answers cheekily in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.

“Mm,” Levi hums, pulling Eren even closer to him so that he can whisper into his ear, “You only grow more beautiful every day.”

Eren doesn’t think he’s beautiful. His hair more often than not sticks out in different directions and his face is way too round for his liking. His eyes, although admittedly pretty, stand out too much that it makes him uncomfortable when he manages to get people to stare at him. He doesn’t know why his nose looks like that and he wishes that he had more muscle to his body, like Levi. He comes out as too loud on certain occasions, and his really,  _ really _ short temper has gotten him into more trouble than he would like to admit. Besides his eyes, he thinks he’s just ordinary, with not much to offer to anyone who’s looking for a romantic relationship.

But with Levi, he feels...special. He feels like he can be proud of his apparently captivating eyes or his pretty face, even if only for a short time. He actually feels more confident, like he could become a runway model right then and there if he wanted to. He feels bolder,  _ braver _ . The way Levi tells him he’s beautiful makes him feel like he’s got no choice but to believe him. It’s just so full of conviction that Eren can’t help but think:  _ If Levi thinks I’m beautiful, then I guess I really am fucking beautiful. _

  
  


(“Levi, please,” Eren begged as he sat on the bed, right next to his boyfriend who was busy [or at least pretending to be busy] reading a book. Levi had been ignoring Eren for a few minutes now, which wasn’t really surprising because it was actually Eren’s fault. He’d gone out to have some fun with his friends, and he’d forgotten to tell his boyfriend that he would come home a little later than usual because of his drained phone. Levi had been worried sick; apparently he’d been ready to just about drag a whole police unit across the city just to make sure that Eren was okay.

Eren pouted and fidgeted where he sat, now feeling the guilt of not telling Levi where he’d been. He hadn’t meant to make Levi worry. He really hadn’t intended to upset his lover at all. He had no excuse for it, however, because he could have borrowed Mikasa’s phone, but he’d been having way too much fun to think ahead.

    He heard Levi sigh, and Eren looked up with expectant eyes. He really hoped that he was finally forgiven.

“Did you have fun, at least?” Levi asked.

Eren nodded, and Levi took another deep breath. The bags under his eyes were now evidently darker, Eren noticed, and his hair was no longer  _ perfectly _ combed into place - that in itself was alarming. Levi looked really tired as he stared at Eren, and when he brought his arm up, Eren scurried to Levi’s side and hugged his lover tightly.

Soon their legs were tangled, their hands seeking skin contact, and Eren couldn’t help but purr when Levi buried his hand in his hair. He nuzzled Levi’s neck and placed a little kiss there before he laid his head back down, sighing in content and finally ready to go to sleep.

    “I’m glad you had fun,” Levi murmured as he pressed a kiss to the top of Eren’s head, his arm running up and down Eren’s side.

    Eren warbled out something unintelligible, followed by a muffled, “I’m not.”

    “What? Why not?” Levi asked.

    Eren humphed and hid his face against Levi’s neck. “I made you upset.”

    “That, you kind of did,” Levi agreed, but he didn’t stop petting Eren’s hair, so the younger man figured it was probably a good sign.

    “I’m sorry,” Eren whined anyway, tightening his arms around Levi’s waist as if the gesture would fix the situation he’d gotten himself into. “I really forgot, and I don’t know why it never crossed my mind and my phone was really like  _ dead _ dead and it never crossed my mind that I could actually use someone  _ else’s _ phone an--”

    “Eren, breathe,” Levi laughed as Eren scrambled to explain what had happened a few hours ago. Eren did take a deep breath, but later on he pouted and hid his face against Levi’s neck again. “You’ll know that you should call me next time, yeah?” Levi compromised, pressing a kiss to Eren’s temple.

    Eren nodded and heaved a deep sigh, nestling himself against Levi’s side more comfortably and getting ready to sleep. “Night, Levi. I’m really sorry,” Eren mumbled sleepily. It had really been a long day and he was fucking  _ drained _ , and if anyone else tried to drag him out of bed right now he wouldn’t hesitate to throw a fit.

    Levi hummed and kept petting his hair. “Goodnight, baby. But you still should have called me.”

    Eren scrunched his nose and slapped Levi’s arm, though he knew he really couldn’t complain. He’d had it coming to himself; truthfully, he was really lucky that he’d been forgiven that easily. “No need to rub it in,” Eren grumbled anyway. He decided to burrow his face into Levi’s chest, because he was definitely  _ not _ going to let his lover see his red face.

    Levi knew though and just quietly pressed a kiss to Eren’s head, finally settling in himself as they both got ready to sleep, happy and content in each other’s arms at last.)

  
  


Eren is broken out of his reverie when he feels Levi combing his hands through his hair, trying to get his attention for sure. If it had been someone else, Eren would be blushing from embarrassment now, but this is Levi-- _ his _ Levi--of all people, and if there was someone who would never mind Eren making a mess of himself, it would be him. He pouts a little and raises his eyebrows, trying to figure out what his lover wants.

Levi brings him down for a kiss, but there’s something about it that’s different. It feels like....like Levi’s nervous, and so he’s kissing Eren in order to ground himself. That’s...weird. Eren has only seen Levi get nervous on two occasions: when he asked Eren out and when he met Eren’s parents. Something about their kiss feels stiff, and to be honest it’s not helping Eren in the slightest. He’s not going to ask about it, though, because Levi always tells Eren everything. It’s probably going to take him a few minutes or a few weeks--it depends on the gravity of the situation--but ultimately, Levi  _ is _ going to tell Eren about it.

So Eren does what he can to comfort his boyfriend, trying to pour some reassurance into their kiss and uncaring of the people watching them do their thing. He tightens his arms around Levi’s neck as he presses his lips a little harder. There’s really something about them dancing in a restaurant with the beach right next to them that makes the moment really romantic (Eren’s just a simple guy, okay? It doesn’t take a lot to romance him; the cheesier it is, the better.). It’s probably because of the firebowls, or of the music that’s playing in the background; maybe it’s a combination of those two -- Eren doesn’t give a shit. He’s already fine with just spending the night with the love of his life, romantic or not.

“Eren,” Levi breathes. They didn’t notice the music stopping, not when Levi has been looking at Eren like that since they came into the restaurant. It really isn’t uncomfortable, but it sure as hell is embarrassing and sweet.

“Yes, babe?” Eren asks, trying to hide the pink on his cheeks.

“I don’t know if you remember what I’m going to tell you, but when you were six, you told me you loved me.”

Eren groans. What timing, really. “You really had to tell me that with so many people around?” he huffed.

“I told you I loved you too,” Levi murmurs, ignoring Eren’s childish protests. He smiles as he adds, “You also told me that we would get married one day, and that you wanted some really cheesy proposal like the ones your mom watched.”

Oh.

_ Oh. _

It’s not like Eren’s expecting anything, but…

_ Oh. _

“I sure as fuck didn’t want your ring to end up on whatever food would be served out there so….”

Levi slides down on one knee as he takes out a small black box from his pocket, his other hand grabbing Eren’s (who’s  _ definitely _ not hyperventilating like crazy). Are they...are they even allowed to have a moment like this in the middle of a fucking restaurant? This is making Eren nervous. This is making  _ Levi _ nervous as well, if his clammy hands are any indication. This can’t be happening. He...Eren needs to sit.

“I know how much you love beaches, baby,” Levi starts, his hand squeezing Eren’s in reassurance. “And I want to give you more reasons to love it, so I chose to ask you here. I’ve known you since we were little kids, and I watched you grow into the beautiful man that you are now.” He kisses Eren’s knuckles. “And you have no idea how fucking grateful I am that I got to be by your side the whole time. And I selfishly want more. I want to have a family with you. I want to grow old with you. I want to come home to no one but you and our future kids. I want to spend Christmas Days and visit our families together. Fucking all of it. I want it all with you, Eren.”

Eren swallows roughly, trying to reassure himself that this isn’t just a dream. “I can’t imagine spending the rest of my life with anyone else,” Levi continues softly as he presses another kiss to the boy’s hand. “I want it with you, Eren. Only you. So…”

Levi’s hands tremble as he lets go of Eren’s and opens the box, revealing a simple silver band with an emerald stone sitting at the top - probably an attempt to capture the beauty of Eren’s eyes. Eren’s crying now, and he’s pretty sure there’s some snot that’s plastered across his face but he doesn’t care. There’s nothing else he cares about at the moment but the beautiful man who’s in front of him, asking Eren to spend the rest of their lives together.

“Eren Yeager, will you marry me?”

“ _ Yes, _ ” Eren manages to choke out, and maybe it came out as a half-sob, but he doesn’t really care. Not when this just became the best day of his life so far. “Yes, I’ll marry you Levi. I’ll marry you,” he warbles, and he laughs as Levi stands up to wrap him up in a hug. There are people cheering and applauding around them, making Eren giggle even more as Levi finally slips the ring across his finger. It looks perfect, like it belongs there...well, which it does, and Eren couldn’t really be any happier.

Levi draws him into a kiss again, and Eren eagerly responds. He should probably wipe his face, and they should probably sit down, but with the stars twinkling brightly above them, the seabreeze making its presence known and the love of his life holding him, Eren has never felt more content.

 

_ You look perfect _

_ Tonight _

  
  
  
  


    ( Nineteen hours later, Eren found himself bounding into his parents’ house, shoving the engagement ring into his mom’s face excitedly. Carla did look happy, but not as shocked as Eren had expected. She just congratulated the both of them and proceeded to finish preparing the dishes. Even Mikasa came off as bored, and Armin just smiled at him and hugged him like it was just a normal holiday.

It turned out that the weekend getaway was in celebration of Eren and Levi’s engagement.

They knew about it all along.

Eren was bummed that he was the  _ only _ one who didn’t know.

Grisha and Kenny just patted Levi for a job well done.)

**Author's Note:**

> This had been....sitting on my drafts for way too long already and I decided that it was about time I shared it because UGH.


End file.
